Digital audio's significance reaches new heights in the current era
The online audio market in Germany has reached a new peak, with over 53 million users tuning in to their favourite music, podcasts, web radios, and audiobooks. According to the Online Audio Monitor (OAM) 25, podcasts play a significant role as an information medium.
One podcast that stands out is "Apokalypse & Filterkaffee", hosted by Yasmine M'Barek and Markus Feldenkirchen every Tuesday. Known for its in-depth content and contextualization of topics, this podcast series has gained a loyal following.
Podcasts serve as a political information source that "pre-sorts" and contextualizes news with a close connection to the audience, as M'Barek puts it. In fact, every second listener tunes in to podcasts about politics and society, making it the most listened-to topic at present.
For both M'Barek and Feldenkirchen, the role political podcasts can play in democracy is clear. The relationship between the host and their audience is paramount, so "audio first" still applies in video podcasts, even though platforms like Spotify have significantly driven the development of video podcasts, and many hosts of these video podcasts come from YouTube.
Transparency and responsibility are central concerns from a regulatory perspective when using Artificial Intelligence (AI) in the online audio market. AI-generated weather forecasts and traffic reports are the most frequently accepted AI-generated contents by online audio users. However, AI voices of known presenters are less accepted compared to AI-generated translations, subtitles, or AI-generated playlists.
When it comes to playback devices, the most commonly used is the smartphone, followed by the smart TV. Interestingly, smart speakers are on the decline in terms of playback device usage. Discoverability on devices and the user interface in the car are important criteria for success in the online audio market.
Music streaming remains the most reached format, followed by web radio, podcasts, and audiobooks. The 50plus target group is increasingly discovering online audio, especially music streaming and podcasts. Four out of ten podcast users, especially those over 30, listen to podcasts that run parallel with a video.
In terms of monetisation, 32 percent of podcast listeners are willing to pay for an ad-free listening experience. Information programs, knowledge, and learning contributions follow closely behind entertainment and comedy with 46 percent in the content ranking of podcast usage.
Overall, the online audio market continues to grow, with podcasts playing an increasingly important role as a source of information and entertainment. As more users discover the convenience and diversity of online audio, we can expect this trend to continue.
